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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24194440">Confined</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/MelissaBosquez/pseuds/MelissaBosquez'>MelissaBosquez</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>BAMF James "Rhodey" Rhodes, BAMF Peter Parker, Cave-In, Claustrophobia, F/M, Gen, Hurt Tony Stark, James "Rhodey" Rhodes &amp; Tony Stark Friendship, James "Rhodey" Rhodes is a Good Bro, Mild Language, Not Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Compliant, Panic Attacks, Protective James "Rhodey" Rhodes, Protective Peter Parker, Rated T for Tony's Potty Mouth, Spelunking, Tony Angst, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tony Stark Lives, Tony Stark Whump, Tony Stark-centric</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-05-15</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-03 01:07:54</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>5,477</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24194440</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/MelissaBosquez/pseuds/MelissaBosquez</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>When what was supposed to be a fun day of spelunking (cave exploring) ends with a cave in, Tony, Peter and Rhodey will have to keep their wits about them in order to escape.</p>
<p>Oh yeah and did Tony forget to mention he was a little claustrophobic?</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>(mentioned) - Relationship, James "Rhodey" Rhodes &amp; Tony Stark, Pepper Potts/Tony Stark, Peter Parker &amp; James "Rhodey" Rhodes, Peter Parker &amp; Tony Stark</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>14</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>119</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Confined</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>I don't know what this is. lol I watched As Above/So Below last night and there's a scene where the character gets stuck in a tight space and I felt myself devolving into a panic attack with the character on screen and so now I have to project my panic onto our favorite panicking disaster, Tony. Shameless 5k whumpfest for our poor boy. I'm sorry, not sorry Tony. </p>
<p>I hope you enjoy. Leave me a comment down below to tell me what you think!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>It was supposed to be a fun day. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>That was the first thing that went through Tony’s mind as the dust and rocks all around him finally began to settle. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He was on vacation. Or rather the whole family was. Tony and Pepper and Morgan. Rhodey, Peter, May and Happy. It had been a year since Thanos had been defeated and while the rest of the world was celebrating with giant gatherings and firework displays, Tony preferred a more laid back approach.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It had been a long year of uncertainty and worry. He nearly died after all and he would never understand how the hell he hadn’t, he’d been so sure he’d used up the last of his nine lives. But with quick thinking on Strange’s part and the combined efforts of Helen Cho’s technology and Wakanda’s he had lived with nothing much worse than scarring and nerve damage.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>At first they thought that his arm might have to go, the damage so severe, and while in theory the thought of getting rid of it and designing a cooler bionic arm to replace his fleshy one sounded awesome, he was kind of attached to the one that he had already, literally. So, they did everything they could to save it, and with skin grafts and Helen’s cradle it had been retained; not without its own issues. The physical therapy was a bitch and it was weaker than it had been. Sometimes due to the extensive nerve damage he would lose feeling in it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>But he was alive.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>So, his family had something to celebrate. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>When Peter suggested an afternoon of spelunking instead of yet another day lounging on the beach, Tony had almost said no. Cave exploring wasn’t anywhere near the list of things that  Tony Stark wanted to do </span>
  <em>
    <span>ever </span>
  </em>
  <span>let alone on his beach vacation. He would never admit it to anyone but caves creeped him out. Bugs, bats, creepy crawly things all in the relative dark? That would be a hard pass. Not to mention he was juuuuuuust a tad claustrophobic. Crawling around holes in a cave? Nope. Not his idea of a good time. </span>
</p>
<p>That wasn't even getting into all the other issues he had developed since his extended stay in an Afghani cave.</p>
<p>
  <span>Still.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The kid was very persuasive, bouncing on the balls of his feet in nervous anticipation and then he hit Tony with his secret weapon; the Bambi eyes. One look at the wide innocent eyes and Tony may as well have been mush. He probably would have agreed to just about anything when hit with them. Plus this was in a way his celebration too,  the anniversary of the day that he had been restored from the Decimation. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Pepper and May seemed even less enthusiastic about this venture but again; those damn eyes could melt even the strongest resolve as they reluctantly offered their consent as long as they promised to be careful.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>So, however, reluctantly Tony agreed and so, they left the girls and safety behind on the beach with Happy, and wrangled Rhodey into their party and headed out to one of the nearby caves. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It wasn’t an unexplored site. Peter had done his homework beforehand and a quick trip into town provided them with all the supplies that they needed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Everything was perfect at first. The cave was actually pretty big and you could walk around and explore normally. The ground was a little wet and damp causing it to be slick in some places but other than that it hadn’t been quite the nightmare inducing terror that Tony thought it’d be. He owed some of that to Rhodey and his always calming presence.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They took silly pictures with their headlamps on, smiling and posing. Shots of the insane crevices that they came across going who knows how deep. A shot of Peter halfway sticking out of one of the small crevices that Tony wouldn't be  caught dead trying to wiggle in and out of and pictures of them just having an all around good time. It was enough for even Tony to begin letting his guard down and then of course, that’s when it happened. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Peter explored a little too far out ahead of the group, wide eyed and intrigued when he’d slipped down a sloping incline. Tony darted forward to grab him but he reached reflexively with his weaker right hand and wasn’t able to pull back with enough force to stop them, suddenly being pulled forward in a whirlwind crash, Rhodey right behind them. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The fall wasn’t too far, all things considered but it was what came after. Rocks shifted as they had fallen and tried to find a spot to grab or break the fall. One or two rocks fell after and then more rumbling and falling down behind them, threatening to bury them. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They were able to get out of the way from the worst of it but the crevice that they had fallen from was all but blocked behind them, leaving them trapped inside this little room.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Everyone okay?” Rhodey called out, coughing as he gently stood up. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m fine,” Peter spoke up and he did seem well enough, nothing marring him aside from superficial cuts that would be gone by the morning at the rate that he healed. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Tones?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Present,” he groaned, sitting up from where he had laid on his back and looking around the room. He noted with despair that there didn’t seem to be any other form of exit available. Peter however, who had been bouncing about the room with all of his nervous energy again, discovered that may not necessarily be the case, after a brief overview.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A small opening rested a couple feet above the cave wall opposite from Tony and from this distance it looked more like a fucking coffin than a way out. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Of course that would be the only way forward, why wouldn’t it be? Everything else that had happened in the last twenty minutes had been a disaster so why wouldn’t he now be forced to climb through a hole that was barely even big enough for him to crawl into in the first place.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Are we sure this is the only way forward?” he gasped out, already feeling his throat beginning to close around his words in panic. “Why can’t Pete just use his Spiderbaby strength to move these rocks and clear us a way?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Tony,” Rhodey began stepping closer towards him and Tony took an unconscious step backwards even as the man grasped his shoulder. “It’s the only way. If we start digging through those rocks it could make the cave in, even worse.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Tony knew that. He did. As an engineer he knew all about structural integrity and the logistics of shifting rocks around in this situation but his mind wouldn’t let him fully accept this concept even as he knew it to be true. His mind was telling him that he was trapped. That he was back in another cave with no way out and that he needed to fight, to dig his way back out to the surface. Just start grabbing rocks and flinging them before he starves to death or suffocates on this stale air. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Then Rhodey is there again in his face bringing him back. There’s a gash around his eye and a steady trickle of blood flowing down his face. Tony watches it with morbid fascination until the man shakes him again and forces him to hold his eyes.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Tony, we’re going to be fine.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Peter watches the exchange in the background, concern flickering across his features as he looks back and forth between the two men, but he stays quiet for once. Tony doesn’t want to scare the kid. He knows that he already feels bad enough about their predicament without Tony adding the weight of all his paranoia and deepest fears onto the kid’s shoulders. So he takes a deep breath and forces his body to remain calm, to keep his wits about him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I know. It’s just small is all,” he wipes at a tickling feeling on his nose and hisses as he pulls his hand back to reveal his own blood from a gash on the bridge. He says a silent thanks that it at least doesn’t feel broken but wishes that he could forget about the pain now that he has discovered the wound. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ll go first,” Peter volunteered.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Absolutely not,” he immediately objects and Peter scoffs.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Come on Mr. Stark, I’m the smallest and the fastest one here. If I’m not able to get through this then neither one of you can and we’ll have to try something else. Let me do this,” and he says it so earnestly that Tony already knows that there’s no way he can tell him no.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Shit,” Tony muttered to himself quietly, his face falling into his hands until he remembered he was bleeding from several different places and probably really dirty so perhaps that wasn’t the best course of action. “Be careful, if you hit a tight spot tell us.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ve got this,” Peter said with the same enthusiasm that he approached everything in his life with. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>In the blink of an eye, Peter had already leaped up and began shimmying his way into the crevice with such graceful agility, that it almost looked like this would be easy and not the hole to hell that it seemed. Once the boy’s legs disappeared carefully down the narrow passageway, Rhodey turned to look at Tony expectantly.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’ve got your six, that way if anything catches I can pull you out,” Tony replied automatically, indicating Rhodey’s impairment as tactfully as possible. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Rhodey looked at him like he wanted to argue but thought better of it, seeing the logic in Tony’s argument. “We’ll get through this,” he said in that no nonsense Rhodey way that left no room for any doubts. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Tony tried for a smile that probably looked more like a grimace with the blood trickling down his face but he took minor comfort in Rhodey’s steadfastness.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Hey, watch where you’re reaching your hands, some of these rocks are kinda pointy,” Peter’s voice echoed back from the crevice. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Rhodey reached his hands up to get a grip on the cave wall and used mostly his upper body strength to pull himself up. “Oh yeah. This is going to be fun,” he said grimly as he got his first look at what was ahead. He took one last look back at Tony before pushing off his foot and propelling his body the rest of the way through the opening, leaving Tony alone. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Tony let loose a shaky breath as soon as his friend was gone from sight. Now that just left himself to begin the trek through hell and he could already feel his heart pounding against his chest. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Slowly he approached the cave wall and reached his hand up as Rhodey had done before to find the leverage to pull himself up but he couldn’t quite find a comfortable spot to do it, his hand slipping wherever he tried.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Fuck.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He brought his hands down and tried to wipe the sweat that had formed there onto his dirty jeans instead when he noticed that they were shaking. He flexed them open and closed trying to ease the strain but the shaking only continued.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <em>
    <span>Get a grip Stark.</span>
  </em>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Tones??” Rhodey’s voice echoed back.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m coming,” he responded automatically and  ignored his impairment, trying again, this time finding a sweet spot and pulling himself up, coordinating his arms and legs together to get up to the crevice. His light illuminated the small hole and he could see the back of Rhodey’s feet not too far ahead as the man army crawled his way across the rocks. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Tony felt his heart drop. The space was even narrower than he had expected, just barely wide enough to fit through, and barely tall enough to be able to lift your head up in. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Shit. I hate caves,” he mumbled and pulled himself up the rest of the way and wedged inside. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He proceeded forward slowly, his arms stretched out in front of him as he dragged and wiggled across the space, doing everything he could to put out of mind the way the walls seemed to be closing in all around him. He focused instead on the grunts and movements of Rhodey ahead of him, keeping his breathing even and steady. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Pete, how is it looking up there?” he projected his voice and was proud at how close to normal he sounded.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Almost there I think. I can see light a little further down,” his voice echoed back from further ahead. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Light. Light’s good right? Light’s a way out.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You alright?” Rhodey followed up in hushed tones, his body pausing and scrunching up enough that Rhodey could semi turn to look at Tony, the light on his head bouncing off the walls unsteadily as he tried to look at him.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Fine. Just keep going. Stop, stopping.” Tony urged, his wrist flicking to shoo the man on his way.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Rhodey gave a look of what may have been constipation, Tony wasn’t sure with how far ahead the man was and the way the shadows played off his face but that’s the face that he imagined him giving him, it was the one he always used when he knew Tony was lying and wouldn’t admit it. But fuck, he just needed him to go so he could get the hell out of this hole. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Loose pebbles shifted against the palms of his hands as he inched his way forward, scratching and scraping against his body. Twice he tried to lift his head up higher only to collide painfully with the ceiling and if the decision hadn’t already been made the moment the tunnel collapsed, this definitely ensured that he never indulged in spelunking ever again. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s okay...this is fine…” he whispered quietly to himself. Think about something else. Not being in this cave. Being out on the beach instead like a normal person with Pepper and Morgan. Or hell, even grumpily sitting under an umbrella with Happy to keep from sunburning. Just anywhere with wide open spaces, the breeze on his face and the sun on his skin. Not this cold, damp, and musty bullshit.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I’m out!” Peter shouted, and Tony could hear the noises of the boy pulling himself out and dropping down onto whatever ground lay ahead of them. “I think there’s a way out. There’s light coming from another tunnel, want me to check it out?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“NO!” Rhodey’s and Tony’s voices responded in unison. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Wait until we’re out before you do anything, kid,” Rhodey called out to the boy.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Okay, jeez I won’t. Just be careful of the last 20ft or so towards the exit. It gets kinda narrow.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“More narrow than this?” Tony stated sarcastically, barely able to move without his arms and legs knocking into some part of the tunnel’s walls, continuing his slow crawl across the rocks. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Steady, Tones.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Tony’s head was pounding, whether from all the adrenaline or his injury or just being stuck in this tiny enclosed space or a mixture of all the above he wasn’t sure, all he knew was that he just had to get the hell out of here, small waves of panic setting in the longer he was enclosed.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Rhodey was still a good twenty feet ahead of him, and he tried to concentrate on his legs as he moved, not the darkness encroaching upon him from everywhere his weak light wasn’t shining. Was it him or was it getting dimmer? It was probably damaged in the cave in. When he got out of here and they made it back home he was going to make arc reactor powered lights, open an entirely different section of SI focusing on sports gear for exactly this occasion, so the next time some poor schmuck found himself in a cave, he at least could see everything around him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He took a few short but deep breaths as he continued, trying to keep his pulse under control.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Every fiber of his being was instantly regretting ever agreeing to this outing. Why couldn’t his kid be a normal thrill seeker and be into sky diving or zip lining or just fucking anything but spelunking? Though to Spiderman he guessed those things weren’t anything new.  Maybe he should have admitted that he was just teensy bit claustrophobic at least. Unexpected he was sure considering he was a man that flew a round in a tin can...or used to be rather...but the Iron Man suit had never seemed small or enclosed, like he was going to suffocate beneath the mask. It was like an extension of himself, a safe space with Jarvis and then Friday and he was strong and nothing could touch him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Now what was he? Retired. Old. Battered. He still had his arm yeah, but it was weak and frail like himself. Maybe the old Tony would have gotten a thrill out of this or embraced the very real danger but not anymore. Now he was really hoping he hadn’t saved the universe last year just to slowly die stuck in this hellhole, literally. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>That’s when he felt it.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>The snag.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>One minute he was inching forward like a human worm and the next his ankle had collided with something sharp. Sharp enough that he was sure it had punctured his jeans, because it had definitely stabbed it’s way into his ankle, a burning pain exploding all around the joint.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Shit! Shit!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>His heart started pounding as he tried to pull himself forward and away from whatever was jabbing at his ankle, but he couldn’t pull free, every movement worsening the wound; he was stuck. His leg wouldn’t go where he wanted it to go and he couldn’t move forward any further.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Tony, talk to me, what’s going on?” He heard Rhodey call down to him but he was further now than he had been before, he was so far away and there was no way that Rhodey would be able to turn back around in his braces and get him. He was going to be stuck forever. This was his fucking tomb. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Stuck,” he gasped out finally, fighting to bring the words up from his chest and out of his mouth. “My foot is stuck...fuck! I can’t move it. I’m stuck Rhodey. It’s a rock or something. I think it cut my leg too.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Tony it’s okay, stay calm,” he tried in that same steadfast voice but it wasn’t working this time. Tony’s adrenaline was going harder than ever and all he could hear was the blood pounding in his ears. He tried to turn his head to look back at his leg but he just ended up hitting his head on the wall again, a plastic crunching noise accompanying the blow as he let out a frustrated cry and tried kicking his feet out but to no avail. If anything he felt more stuck. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit. Not here. Not here. Not now,” he whispered the silent mantra to himself as he felt his throat constrict and his chest begin to heave like it did when he was about to have a full fledged panic attack. He thought that Rhodey might have been yelling something to him but he couldn’t hear over his own heavy breaths as he squeezed his eyes shut and tried to count to ten or remember any of his grounding techniques that he had used for years but all he could see was darkness. His eyes shot open instead and was met with more of the same. He couldn’t even see Rhodey’s feet anymore.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He lifted his hand up and felt around for his light but that must have been the crunching noise he had heard, his light completely broken.  </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Perfect. Exactly what he needed right now. And he couldn't see Rhodey or his light. Had he left him there? Rhodey wouldn’t do that right? He was his best friend and they were on vacation, he wouldn’t just leave Tony to die in this miserable place, but where was his light?! He swiped miserably at the sweat forming on his face, feeling light headed and dizzy as his breaths continued to come out in gasps and wheezes.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Oh fuck, I can’t breathe,” he wheezed and tried to zig zag his way out once more to no avail. He was able to semi turn his body and he reached out with his left arm but he wasn’t flexible enough to reach that far to unsnag himself. He collapsed back against the rocky, mud in defeat, heart still pounding out of his chest. He brought a shaky hand in to grasp at his chest trying like hell to steady himself, to remember to breathe normally, in for five seconds and then out. In and out. In and out. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>He wasn’t going to be left here. He would get out or someone would come for him. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Now what the hell were his grounding steps? Sight, touch, hear, smell, taste? </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Five things that he could see. Wasn’t that a joke in itself because he couldn’t see shit without his headlamp. But then he did see something. It was a light and it was moving. It had to be Rhodey. It was barely strong enough to reach him but he saw it none the less. If he brought his hand really close to his face he could see the smear of dirt and blood on his palm so that counted for two right?. He could vaguely make out the shape of the cavern walls and he could just make out the glint of his wedding band on his left hand.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Okay, four things he could touch. He could touch all four fucking walls surrounding him and they definitely weren’t closing in on him, they were the same distance apart as before. Tony could move his hands outwards and touch them and it was always the same. He was </span>
  <em>
    <span>fine</span>
  </em>
  <span>. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Three things he could hear. His heavy breaths as he struggled to continue to regulate the panic that was crushing his insides. The sounds of people talking but it sounded like they were really far away and muffled like they were under water. He could hear the sounds of rocks scraping and shifting.That probably wasn’t good right?</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Two things he can smell. A damp, earthy musk from the cave and his own sweat as it continued to run rivulets down his temple.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Taste. His tongue instinctively popped out and licked above his lip and instantly came away with the metallic taste of blood. Not the best tasting thing in the world.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>A couple more deep breaths in and out and he was finally able to focus again and he noticed that the light was actually coming towards him, not away. The world in front of him snapping back into clarity, the muffled voice suddenly as clear and unobstructed as any other conversation. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Mr. Stark!! Can you hear me?!”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It took a moment for his eyes to fully focus but Peter slowly shifted into his vision, the headlamp bobbing about as he squirmed his way towards Tony. He looked distressed, his face red and hot like he had been yelling for a long time.“P-peter?” he rasped back.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“YES. It’s me Peter. I’m almost there, okay? I’m going to get you unstuck.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Rhodey?” he questioned, confused how Peter could get back here.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“He’s waiting at the other end, he wanted to come but I figured my super strength might come a bit more in handy.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Tony watched the boy in a daze as he was finally just a few feet in front of him and the boy smiled in relief though Tony was sure he looked absolutely wrecked.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What’s caught?” he asked and moved his head down to his right and looked down to try and see what held the man in place.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“My pants. My leg. I don’t know if it's just caught or what.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Peter grimaced as he finally seemed to be able to see whatever it was that was holding him back. “You’re bleeding,” he concluded and Tony laughed because of course he was. He had been stabbed by some stupid piece of rock that had probably been there for millions of years, just waiting for someone dumb enough and panicked enough to come crashing into it. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Okay, I can’t get down there so I’ll just have to pull you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>That did not sound like a good idea but who was he to disagree? He certainly didn’t have any better options. Peter reached out to him and grasped both of his hands in his and Tony hated how slick with sweat his own were, but tried to focus on the boy instead. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“1...2...3…”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Peter pulled with as much of his spider strength as he dared, without pulling Tony’s arms out of the socket and sure enough, Tony could feel as the material of his jeans ripped further and then his leg was freed as he was pulled forward several inches. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Tony could have cried right then if he wasn’t immediately reminded that he wasn’t out of the woods yet. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Can you move it?” Peter asked, never letting go of his mentor’s hands. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Tony wiggled the limb experimentally and aside from the burning pain of the cut, his mobility seemed to be fine. “Good as new. Thank you.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>It was hard to see with Peter’s light shining towards him but his face shifted into a grim expression. “Don’t thank me. I’m the reason you’re even in this mess.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Tony was hurt and tired and half driven out of his mind with panic, but still that protective dad instinct inside of him swelled to the surface, ready to absolve Peter of any wrongdoing. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It’s not your fault Pete. You didn’t make this happen.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You’re claustrophobic,” he immediately responded, sounding a little sheepish as he admitted the information. “Colonel Rhodes told me when you started to have the panic attack. Why would you ever agree to this?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You're my kid,” he responded as if that explained everything and in a way it did. “You matter and it’s what you wanted to do. What was one little cave trip when I already almost died just to bring you back?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Peter had already confronted him when Tony was recovering about why he had risked everything, why he had laid his life on the line and been shell shocked that it had been all for him, and for Morgan’s future too. It was often a point of contention between them, Peter feeling neither worthy or important enough to merit such action and Tony insulted that he could ever think so low of himself, but he had made it his vow to make sure that Peter knew that he was family, and Tony would do anything for his family if they asked him to or need him to. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Please don’t remind me. I know it’s the anniversary and all, but you really don’t have to almost die every year to make up for lost time,” Peter joked, though his voice had turned uneven and a tear formed at the corner of his eye. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“And risk not being the center of attention, then where’s the fun in that?” Tony joked back, his voice just as thick with emotion. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Peter laughed it off nervously and squeezed Tony’s hands and let go. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Okay, I’m going to be with you every step of the way now,” Peter said and began pushing his body back towards the other end of the hole. There would be no turning around for him in this narrow space. “Just keep your eyes on mine and stay focused. Talk to me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Tony reached his arms out in front of him and pulled forward, hissing as his leg dragged uncomfortably across the ground. “Okay,” he gritted out. “What made you pick up this little hobby?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Peter groaned. “Erm. Not sure that’s the best topic right now.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Now I only want to know more.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You won’t like it,”  Peter replied, scooting back with every little bit that Tony moved forward, keeping the light between them so Tony could see what he was reaching towards. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Try me.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Peter sighed. “I’m claustrophobic too.  Or I was. Mostly. After Toomes.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Sure have a funny way of dealing with it,” Tony said, remembering the story all too well about how the man had dropped a building on his kid. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“It helps me feel under control when I go through these places and come out on the other side all on my own. It makes it so that I’m not afraid anymore.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Tony could understand that. He didn’t want to feel helpless, he needed to be in control and facing his fears head on gave him that. It was actually pretty admirable and he was proud of Peter for taking his life in his own hands, even if Tony himself wasn’t a fan of the methods.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Yeah, I don’t think this will have the same result with mine,” Tony said lightly, continuing to watch the boy inch his way backwards, calm and collected like this was a normal day.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Peter laughed back. “No, I think I’ve made yours worse.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Good thing I have plenty of money for therapy right?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Peter guffawed. “Like you’d ever actually go to therapy.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Jeez Pete, you’re really not pulling your punches today are you?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They continued bantering back and forth like that as they slowly continued down the narrow passageway until Peter’s feet came to hang over the end and Rhodey was there to guide him down onto the cavern floor and then reaching up for Tony. There was a brief moment where Tiny felt panicked again when Rhodey reached out to pull him the rest of the way and his hand, the bad one, had gone numb and he wasn’t able to grip the man back with much strength, but Rhodey talked him down quickly and tried again, this time getting a firm grasp around his wrists and finally pulling him out. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>They were still in the cave but Tony practically heaved in the extra air and then promptly proceeded to vomit the contents of his stomach, an unfortunate leftover residual from his panic attack, though he was happy that he just hadn’t done it before. Nothing like crawling over your own sick. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Rhodey rubbed his back through it all as he slumped against the cave wall, already well attuned to his attacks and their aftermaths. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Being slumped forward like this brought him his first glimpse of his leg and sure enough his jeans were spliced right down to his foot and a gash that was definitely going to need stitches, bled into his boot. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Can you walk? I found a way out just up ahead,” Rhodey asked gently. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I think so.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“You can borrow my braces if you need to,” Rhodey teased. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I think I’ll just lean on you if it’s all the same.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Rhodey helped carry his weight as they made it towards the light that Peter had seen before and that he had explored while the boy was saving Tony. Unfortunately the only way out was a narrow crevice but this time they were standing up through it and wiggling by that way. Peter was right behind Tony this time in case anything else happened but they were pretty much out, even as Tony’s mind seemed fit to remind him about that one movie where the guy’s arm got stuck and he had to cut it off. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Tony practically fell out of the cave when they finally hit the solid ground of the woods, just down the hill from where they had initially begun. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“What are the odds that we don’t tell Pepper about this near death experience?” he huffed out on his hands and knees, relishing the feel of the earth between his fingers. </span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Or May…” Peter muttered to himself.</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Rhodey scoffed as the light of day revealed the true amount of superficial wounds on his face and arms and the fact that his leg alone was probably going to need stitches, let alone whatever was wrong with his nose. “Given that we all look like we’ve gone a few rounds with Mike Tyson, probably zero.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“I thought not,” he said, wiping at his face again. “Next time we stay at the beach, okay?”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Got it.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>“Don’t gotta tell me twice.”</span>
</p>
<p>
  <span>Peter and Rhodey responded in unison, helping Tony up and beginning their trek back to the car, wondering how the hell they were going to explain this one to a very upset May and Pepper and live to tell </span>
  <em>
    <span>that </span>
  </em>
  <span>tale.</span>
</p>
<p><br/>
<br/>
<br/>
</p>
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